Finucane draws on Hunt and Hodgkinson as World Track Championships begin in Shanghai
Emma Finucane, citing inspiration from Keely Hodgkinson and Amy Hunt, will contest the World Track Championships in Shanghai, China, from Wednesday to Sunday, an event being shown live on the BBC.
Keely Hodgkinson, Amy Hunt and Emma Finucane were all born months apart in 2002 and have each won Olympic and world championship medals; together they account for 17 Olympic, world and European titles. Finucane also added four Commonwealth Games golds for Wales in Glasgow over the summer.
Finucane described how she admired Hunt’s “glamorous nails and historic golds” at the European Athletics Championships and Hodgkinson’s use of a specially designed suit when she won the 800m at Athlos. "Ultimately when I feel confident and unstoppable on the track, I feel like I can do anything," the 23-year-old told BBC Sport.
She outlined the three pillars she associates with those performances: speed from hours in the gym and sessions at Manchester’s velodrome; science from the British team’s investment in kit and wind-tunnel testing; and fashion as the finishing touches that boost confidence. Ahead of her Commonwealth clean sweep, Finucane received a custom-built bike and a specially-designed helmet.
On the role of appearance in performance, Finucane said: "Leading up to a comp you're physically pushing yourself to a limit in the gym and on the track. You're absolutely going to breaking point because you want to get physically the best you can be. But then why not, in the final stages, feel confident about yourself on the track? When I get my nails done or my hair done, little things like that are the final touches."
She added: "It's not really spoken about how you're feeling and how confident you need to be. How you want to express the way you look by doing different make-up or having different hair or things like that. It's really cool that sport allows you to do that. You can be muscly but you can also wear make-up and do really cool things with your body."
Finucane is part of a 19-strong British team at the World Championships, the first event to count towards qualifying for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, and will compete in the team sprint, individual sprint and keirin at her fifth World Championships. There has been disruption in the build-up after her partner Matt Richardson was withdrawn amid reports he is under investigation for misconduct. Speaking before Richardson’s departure, Finucane said she was desperate to regain the world champion’s rainbow stripes after two silvers last year: "It's something I learned last year actually," she said. "I came fifth or sixth in the sprint competition and I felt I failed. It's how you pick yourself up from that. I went into the keirin and I got second, which is the best keirin result I've ever had, so I was able to turn that around. Essentially, Worlds is a stepping stone to get to LA. I spoke to Scott (Pollock, her coach) and he said we either go there to win or we learn. I like that approach. I don't fail. I win or learn something about myself." Earlier this year Finucane and teammate Sophie Capewell travelled to Los Angeles to get their first taste of the velodrome, and Finucane became world champion in Glasgow in 2023.
BBC coverage of the 2026 Tissot UCI Track World Championships is scheduled as follows: Wednesday, 14 October – iPlayer – 11:20-13:40 (BST); Thursday, 15 October – iPlayer - 09:50-13:55; Friday, 16 October – iPlayer – 09:50-14:05; Saturday, 17 October – iPlayer – 10:20-14:05, BBC Two – 10:15-14:15; Sunday, 18 October – BBC Two – 04:00-05:30 and 06:30-10:30.
Finucane has said the World Championships are "a stepping stone to get to LA" and she intends to finish the week with the rainbow stripes back on her jersey.